Ejection of ink using pulsating pressure and a movable shutter

ABSTRACT

An ink jet printer uses an actuator and an oscillating pressured ink supply. A shutter is located between the ink supply and an ink ejection port, normally blocking the ink ejection port. An actuator is provided for moving the shutter mechanism on demand away from the ink ejection port so as to allow for the ejection of ink on demand from the ink ejection port. The actuator includes a thermal actuator in a coiled form constructed primarily from polytetrafluorethylene. The coil is uncoiled upon heating. The actuator includes a serpentine heater element encased in a material having a high coefficient of thermal expansion. The serpentine heater takes a concertina form upon heating and a thick return trace returns the actuator to its original position upon cooling.

CROSS REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This application is a continuation application of U.S. Ser. No.09/855,094. The disclosure of U.S. Ser. No. 09/855,094 is specificallyincorporated herein by reference.

[0002] The following Australian provisional patent applications arehereby incorporated by cross-reference. For the purposes of location andidentification, U.S. patent applications identified by their U.S. patentapplication Ser. Nos. (U.S. Ser. No.) are listed alongside theAustralian applications from which the U.S. patent applications claimthe right of priority. CROSS-REFERENCED AUSTRALIAN US PATENT/PATENTAPPLICATION PROVISIONAL PATENT (CLAIMING RIGHT OF PRIORITY FROMAUSTRALIAN APPLICATION NO. PROVISIONAL APPLICATION) DOCKET NO. PO799109/113,060 ART01 PO8505 09/113,070 ART02 PO7988 09/113,073 ART03 PO939509/112,748 ART04 PO8017 09/112,747 ART06 PO8014 09/112,776 ART07 PO802509/112,750 ART08 PO8032 09/112,746 ART09 PO7999 09/112,743 ART10 PO799809/112,742 ART11 PO8031 09/112,741 ART12 PO8030 09/112,740 ART13 PO799709/112,739 ART15 PO7979 09/113,053 ART16 PO8015 09/112,738 ART17 PO797809/113,067 ART18 PO7982 09/113,063 ART19 PO7989 09/113,069 ART20 PO801909/112,744 ART21 PO7980 09/113,058 ART22 PO8018 09/112,777 ART24 PO793809/113,224 ART25 PO8016 09/112,804 ART26 PO8024 09/112,805 ART27 PO794009/113,072 ART28 PO7939 09/112,785 ART29 PO8501 09/112,797 ART30 PO850009/112,796 ART31 PO7987 09/113,071 ART32 PO8022 09/112,824 ART33 PO849709/113,090 ART34 PO8020 09/112,823 ART38 PO8023 09/113,222 ART39 PO850409/112,786 ART42 PO8000 09/113,051 ART43 PO7977 09/112,782 ART44 PO793409/113,056 ART45 PO7990 09/113,059 ART46 PO8499 09/113,091 ART47 PO850209/112,753 ART48 PO7981 09/113,055 ART50 PO7986 09/113,057 ART51 PO798309/113,054 ART52 PO8026 09/112,752 ART53 PO8027 09/112,759 ART54 PO802809/112,757 ART56 PO9394 09/112,758 ART57 PO9396 09/113,107 ART58 PO939709/112,829 ART59 PO9398 09/112,792 ART60 PO9399 6,106,147 ART61 PO940009/112,790 ART62 PO9401 09/112,789 ART63 PO9402 09/112,788 ART64 PO940309/112,795 ART65 PO9405 09/112,749 ART66 PPO959 09/112,784 ART68 PP139709/112,783 ART69 PP2370 09/112,781 DOT01 PP2371 09/113,052 DOT02 PO800309/112,834 Fluid01 PO8005 09/113,103 Fluid02 PO9404 09/113,101 Fluid03PO8066 09/112,751 IJ01 PO8072 09/112,787 IJ02 PO8040 09/112,802 IJ03PO8071 09/112,803 IJ04 PO8047 09/113,097 IJ05 PO8035 09/113,099 IJ06PO8044 09/113,084 IJ07 PO8063 09/113,066 IJ08 PO8057 09/112,778 IJ09PO8056 09/112,779 IJ10 PO8069 09/113,077 IJ11 PO8049 09/113,061 IJ12PO8036 09/112,818 IJ13 PO8048 09/112,816 IJ14 PO8070 09/112,772 IJ15PO8067 09/112,819 IJ16 PO8001 09/112,815 IJ17 PO8038 09/113,096 IJ18PO8033 09/113,068 IJ19 PO8002 09/113,095 IJ20 PO8068 09/112,808 IJ21PO8062 09/112,809 IJ22 PO8034 09/112,780 IJ23 PO8039 09/113,083 IJ24PO8041 09/113,121 IJ25 PO8004 09/113,122 IJ26 PO8037 09/112,793 IJ27PO8043 09/112,794 IJ28 PO8042 09/113,128 IJ29 PO8064 09/113,127 IJ30PO9389 09/112,756 IJ31 PO9391 09/112,755 IJ32 PP0888 09/112,754 IJ33PP0891 09/112,811 IJ34 PP0890 09/112,812 IJ35 PP0873 09/112,813 IJ36PP0993 09/112,814 IJ37 PP0890 09/112,764 IJ38 PP1398 09/112,765 IJ39PP2592 09/112,767 IJ40 PP2593 09/112,768 IJ41 PP3991 09/112,807 IJ42PP3987 09/112,806 IJ43 PP3985 09/112,820 IJ44 PP3983 09/112,821 IJ45PO7935 09/112,822 IJM01 PO7936 09/112,825 IJM02 PO7937 09/112,826 IJM03PO8061 09/112,827 IJM04 PO8054 09/112,828 IJM05 PO8065 6,071,750 IJM06PO8055 09/113,108 IJM07 PO8053 09/113,109 IJM08 PO8078 09/113,123 IJM09PO7933 09/113,114 IJM10 PO7950 09/113,115 IJM11 PO7949 09/113,129 IJM12PO8060 09/113,124 IJM13 PO8059 09/113,125 IJM14 PO8073 09/113,126 IJM15PO8076 09/113,119 IJM16 PO8075 09/113,120 IJM17 PO8079 09/113,221 IJM18PO8050 09/113,116 IJM19 PO8052 09/113,118 IJM20 PO7948 09/113,117 IJM21PO7951 09/113,113 IJM22 PO8074 09/113,130 IJM23 PO7941 09/113,110 IJM24PO8077 09/113,112 IJM25 PO8058 09/113,087 IJM26 PO8051 09/113,074 IJM27PO8045 6,111,754 IJM28 PO7952 09/113,088 IJM29 PO8046 09/112,771 IJM30PO9390 09/112,769 IJM31 PO9392 09/112,770 IJM32 PPO889 09/112,798 IJM35PPO887 09/112,801 IJM36 PPO882 09/112,800 IJM37 PPO874 09/112,799 IJM38PP1396 09/113,098 IJM39 PP3989 09/112,833 IJM40 PP2591 09/112,832 IJM41PP3990 09/112,831 IJM42 PP3986 09/112,830 IJM43 PP3984 09/112,836 IJM44PP3982 09/112,835 IJM45 PP0895 09/113,102 IR01 PP0870 09/113,106 IR02PP0869 09/113,105 IR04 PP0887 09/113,104 IR05 PP0885 09/112,810 IR06PP0884 09/112,766 IR10 PP0886 09/113,085 IR12 PP0871 09/113,086 IR13PP0876 09/113,094 IR14 PP0877 09/112,760 IR16 PP0878 09/112,773 IR17PP0879 09/112,774 IR18 PP0883 09/112,775 IR19 PP0880 09/112,745 IR20PP0881 09/113,092 IR21 PO8006 6,087,638 MEMS02 PO8007 09/113,093 MEMS03PO8008 09/113,062 MEMS04 PO8010 6,041,600 MEMS05 PO8011 09/113,082MEMS06 PO7947 6,067,797 MEMS07 PO7944 09/113,080 MEMS09 PO7946 6,044,646MEMS10 PO9393 09/113,065 MEMS11 PP0875 09/113,078 MEMS12 PP089409/113,075 MEMS13

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

[0003] Not applicable.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0004] The present invention relates to ink jet printing and inparticular provides a PTFE surface shooting shuttered oscillatingpressure ink jet printer.

[0005] The present invention further relates to the field of drop ondemand ink jet printing.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0006] Many different types of printing have been invented, a largenumber of which are presently in use. The known forms of print have avariety of methods for marking the print media with a relevant markingmedia. Commonly used forms of printing include offset printing, laserprinting and copying devices, dot matrix type impact printers, thermalpaper printers, film recorders, thermal wax printers, dye sublimationprinters and ink jet printers both of the drop on demand and continuousflow type. Each type of printer has its own advantages and problems whenconsidering cost, speed, quality, reliability, simplicity ofconstruction and operation etc.

[0007] In recent years, the field of ink jet printing, wherein eachindividual pixel of ink is derived from one or more ink nozzles hasbecome increasingly popular primarily due to its inexpensive andversatile nature.

[0008] Many different techniques on ink jet printing have been invented.For a survey of the field, reference is made to an article by J Moore,“Non-Impact Printing: Introduction and Historical Perspective”, OutputHard Copy Devices, Editors R Dubeck and S Sherr, pages 207-220 (1988).

[0009] Ink Jet printers themselves come in many different types. Theutilisation of a continuous stream ink in ink jet printing appears todate back to at least 1929 wherein U.S. Pat. No. 1,941,001 by Hanselldiscloses a simple form of continuous stream electro-static ink jetprinting.

[0010] U.S. Pat. No. 3,596,275 by Sweet also discloses a process of acontinuous ink jet printing including the step wherein the ink jetstream is modulated by a high frequency electro-static field so as tocause drop separation. This technique is still used by severalmanufacturers including Elmjet and Scitex (see also U.S. Pat. No.3,373,437 by Sweet et al)

[0011] Piezoelectric ink jet printers are also one form of commonly usedink jet printing device. Piezoelectric systems are disclosed by Kyseret. al. in U.S. Pat. No. 3,946,398 (1970) which discloses a diaphragmmode of operation, by Zolten in U.S. Pat. No. 3,683,212 (1970) whichdiscloses a squeeze mode of operation of a piezoelectric crystal, Stemmein U.S. Pat. No. 3,747,120 (1972) which discloses a bend mode ofpiezoelectric operation, Howkins in U.S. Pat. No. 4,459,601 whichdiscloses a piezoelectric push mode actuation of the inkjet stream andFischbeck in U.S. Pat. No. 4,584,590 which discloses a shear mode typeof piezoelectric transducer element.

[0012] Recently, thermal ink jet printing has become an extremelypopular form of ink jet printing. The ink jet printing techniquesinclude those disclosed by Endo et al in GB 2007162 (1979) and Vaught etal in U.S. Pat. No. 4,490,728. Both the aforementioned referencesdisclose ink jet printing techniques rely upon the activation of anelectrothermal actuator which results in the creation of a bubble in aconstricted space, such as a nozzle, which thereby causes the ejectionof ink from an aperture connected to the confined space onto a relevantprint media. Printing devices using the electro-thermal actuator aremanufactured by manufacturers such as Canon and Hewlett Packard.

[0013] As can be seen from the foregoing, many different types ofprinting technologies are available. Ideally, a printing technologyshould have a number of desirable attributes. These include inexpensiveconstruction and operation, high speed operation, safe and continuouslong term operation etc. Each technology may have its own advantages anddisadvantages in the areas of cost, speed, quality, reliability, powerusage, simplicity of construction operation, durability and consumables.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0014] It is an object of the present invention to provide analternative form of ink jet printing using an actuator and a shutteredoscillating pressured ink supply.

[0015] In accordance with the first aspect of the present invention,there is provided an ink jet nozzle comprising an ink ejection port forthe ejection of ink, an ink supply with an oscillating ink pressureinterconnected to the ink ejection port, a shutter mechanisminterconnected between the ink supply and the ink ejection port, whichblocks the ink ejection port, and an actuator mechanism for moving theshutter mechanism on demand away from the ink ejection port so as toallow for the ejection of ink on demand from the ink ejection port.

[0016] In another embodiment of the invention, there is provided amethod of operating an ink jet printhead that includes a plurality ofnozzle arrangements and an ink reservoir, each nozzle arrangementhaving:

[0017] a nozzle chamber and an ink ejection port in fluid communicationwith the nozzle chamber, and

[0018] a closure that is operatively positioned with respect to the inkejection port, the closure being displaceable between open and closedpositions to open and close the ink ejection port, respectively,

[0019] the ink reservoir in fluid communication with the nozzlechambers, the method comprising the steps of:

[0020] maintaining each closure in the closed position;

[0021] subjecting ink in the ink reservoir and thus each nozzle chamberto an oscillating pressure,

[0022] selectively and independently displacing each closure into theopen position so that an ink droplet is ejected from the respective inkejection port as a result of the oscillating pressure.

[0023] Further, the actuator preferably comprises a thermal actuatorwhich is activated by the heating of one side of the actuator.Preferably the actuator has a coiled form and is uncoiled upon heating.The actuator includes a serpentine heater element encased in a materialhaving a high coefficient of thermal expansion. The serpentine heaterconcertinas upon heating. Advantageously, the actuator includes a thickreturn trace for the serpentine heater element. The material in whichthe serpentine heater element is encased comprisespolytetrafluoroethylene. The actuator is formed within a nozzle chamberwhich is formed on a silicon wafer and ink is supplied to the ejectionport through channels etched through the silicon wafer.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0024] Notwithstanding any other forms which may fall within the scopeof the present invention, preferred forms of the invention will now bedescribed, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanyingdrawings in which:

[0025]FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view illustrating theconstruction of a single ink jet nozzle in accordance with the preferredembodiment;

[0026]FIG. 2 is a perspective view, partly in section, of a single inkjet nozzle constructed in accordance with the preferred embodiment;

[0027]FIG. 3 provides a legend of the materials indicated in FIGS. 4 to16;

[0028]FIG. 4 to FIG. 16 illustrate sectional views of the manufacturingsteps in one form of construction of an inkjet printhead nozzle; and

[0029]FIG. 17 shows a schematic, sectional end view of part of an inkjet nozzle array showing two nozzle arrangements of the array,

[0030]FIG. 18 shows the array with ink being ejected from one of thenozzle arrangements;

[0031]FIG. 19 shows a schematic side view of re-filling of the nozzle ofthe first nozzle arrangement; and

[0032]FIG. 20 shows operation of the array preceding commencement of inkejection from the second of the illustrated nozzle arrangements.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED AND OTHER EMBODIMENTS

[0033] In the preferred embodiment, an oscillating ink reservoirpressure is used to eject ink from ejection nozzles. Each nozzle has anassociated shutter which normally blocks the nozzle. The shutter ismoved away from the nozzle by an actuator whenever an ink drop is to befired.

[0034] Turning initially to FIG. 1, there is illustrated in explodedperspective a single ink jet nozzle 10 as constructed in accordance withthe principles of the present invention. The exploded perspectiveillustrates a single ink jet nozzle 10. Ideally, the nozzles are formedas an array on a silicon wafer 12. The silicon wafer 12 is processed soas to have two level metal CMOS circuitry which includes metal layersand glass layers 13 and which are planarised after construction. TheCMOS metal layer has a reduced aperture 14 for the access of ink fromthe back of silicon wafer 12 via an ink supply channel 15.

[0035] A bottom nitride layer 16 is constructed on top of the CMOS layer13 so as to cover, protect and passivate the CMOS layer 13 fromsubsequent etching processes. Subsequently, there is provided a copperheater layer 18 which is sandwiched between two polytetrafluoroethylene(PTFE) layers 19,20. The copper layer 18 is connected to lower CMOSlayer 13 through vias 25,26. The copper layer 18 and PTFE layers 19,20are encapsulated within nitride borders e.g. 28 and nitride top layer 29which includes an ink ejection port 30 in addition to a number ofsacrificial etched access holes 32 which are of a smaller dimension thanthe ejection port 30 and are provided for allowing access of a etchantto lower sacrificial layers thereby allowing the use of the etchant inthe construction of layers, 18,19,20 and 28.

[0036] Turning now to FIG. 2, there is shown a cutaway perspective viewof a fully constructed ink jet nozzle 10. The ink jet nozzle uses anoscillating ink pressure to eject ink from ejection port 30. Each nozzlehas an associated shutter 31 which normally blocks it. The shutter 31 ismoved away from the ejection port 30 by an actuator 35 whenever an inkdrop is to be fired.

[0037] The ports 30 are in communication with ink chambers which containthe actuators 35. These chambers are connected to ink supply channels 15which are etched through the silicon wafer. The ink supply channels 15are substantially wider than the ports 30, to reduce the fluidicresistance to the ink pressure wave. The ink channels 15 are connectedto an ink reservoir. An ultrasonic transducer (for example, apiezoelectric transducer) is positioned in the reservoir. The transduceroscillates the ink pressure at approximately 100 KHz. The ink pressureoscillation is sufficient that ink drops would be ejected from thenozzle were it not blocked by the shutter 31.

[0038] The shutters are moved by a thermoelastic actuator 35. Theactuators are formed as a coiled serpentine copper heater 23 embedded inpolytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) 19/20. PTFE has a very high coefficientof thermal expansion (approximately 770×10⁻⁶). The current return trace22 from the heater 23 is also embedded in the PTFE actuator 35, thecurrent return trace 22 is made wider than the heater trace 23 and isnot serpentine. Therefore, it does not heat the PTFE as much as theserpentine heater 23 does. The serpentine heater 23 is positioned alongthe inside edge of the PTFE coil, and the return trace is positioned onthe outside edge. When actuated, the inside edge becomes hotter than theoutside edge, and expands more. This results in the actuator 35uncoiling.

[0039] The heater layer 23 is etched in a serpentine manner both toincrease its resistance, and to reduce its effective tensile strengthalong the length of the actuator. This is so that the low thermalexpansion of the copper does not prevent the actuator from expandingaccording to the high thermal expansion characteristics of the PTFE.

[0040] By varying the power applied to the actuator 35, the shutter 31can be positioned between the fully on and fully off positions. This maybe used to vary the volume of the ejected drop. Drop volume control maybe used either to implement a degree of continuous tone operation, toregulate the drop volume, or both.

[0041] When data signals distributed on the printhead indicate that aparticular nozzle is turned on, the actuator 35 is energized, whichmoves the shutter 31 so that it is not blocking the ink chamber. Thepeak of the ink pressure variation causes the ink to be squirted out ofthe nozzle 30. As the ink pressure goes negative, ink is drawn back intothe nozzle, causing drop break-off. The shutter 31 is kept open untilthe nozzle is refilled on the next positive pressure cycle. It is thenshut to prevent the ink from being withdrawn from the nozzle on the nextnegative pressure cycle.

[0042] Each drop ejection takes two ink pressure cycles. Preferably halfof the nozzles 10 should eject drops in one phase, and the other half ofthe nozzles should eject drops in the other phase. This minimises thepressure variations which occur due to a large number of nozzles beingactuated.

[0043] Referring to FIGS. 17 to 20, the operation of the printhead isdescribed in greater detail. The printhead comprises an array of nozzlearrangements or nozzles 10, two of which are shown as 10.1 and 10.2 inFIG. 17. Each nozzle arrangement 10 has a chamber 58 in which itsassociated shutter 31 is arranged.

[0044] Each chamber 58 is in communication with an ink reservoir 60 viaan ink supply channel 36. An ultrasonic transducer in the form of apiezoelectric transducer 62 is arranged n the ink reservoir 60.

[0045] As described above, each ink drop ejection takes two ink pressurecycles. The two ink pressure cycles are referred to as a phase. Half ofthe nozzles 10 should eject ink drops 64 (FIG. 18) in one phase with theother half of the nozzles ejecting ink drops in the other phase.

[0046] Consequently, as shown in FIG. 17 of the drawings, the shutter31.2 of the nozzle 10.2 is in an open position while the shutter 31.1 ofthe nozzle 10.1 is in its closed position. It will be appreciated thatthe nozzle 10.2 represents all the open nozzles of the array of theprinthead while the nozzle 10.1 represents all the closed nozzles of thearray of the printhead.

[0047] In a first pressure cycle, the transducer 62 is displaced in thedirection of arrows 66 imparting positive pressure to the ink 57 in thereservoir 60 and, via the channels 36, the chambers 58 of the nozzles10. Due to the fact that the shutter 31.2 of the nozzle 10.2 is open,ink in the ink ejection port 30.2 bulges outwardly as shown by themeniscus 68. After a predetermined interval, the transducer 62 reversesdirection to move in the direction of arrows 70 as shown in FIG. 18 ofthe drawings. This causes necking, as shown at 72, resulting inseparation of the ink drop 64 due to a first negative going pressurecycle imparted to the ink 57.

[0048] In the second positive pressure cycle, as shown in FIG. 19 of thedrawings, with the transducer moving again in the direction of arrow 66,the positive pressure applied to the ink results in a refilling of thechamber 58.2 of the nozzle 10.2. It is to be noted that the shutter 31.2is still in an open position with the shutter 31.1 still being in aclosed position. In this cycle, no ink is ejected from either nozzle10.1 or 10.2.

[0049] Before the second negative pressure cycle, as shown in FIG. 20 ofthe drawings, the shutter 31.2 moves to its closed position. Then, asthe transducer 62 again moves in the direction of arrows 70 to impartnegative pressure to the ink 57, a slight concave meniscus 74 is formedat both ink ejection ports 30.1 and 30.2 However, due to the fact thatboth shutters 31.1 and 31.2 are closed, withdrawal of ink from thechambers 58.1 and 58.2 of the nozzles 10.1 and 10.2, respectively, isinhibited.

[0050] The amplitude of the ultrasonic transducer can be altered inresponse to the viscosity of the ink (which is typically affected bytemperature), and the number of drops which are to be ejected in thecurrent cycle. This amplitude adjustment can be used to maintainconsistent drop size in varying environmental conditions.

[0051] The drop firing rate can be around 50 KHz. The ink jet head issuitable for fabrication as a monolithic page wide printhead. FIG. 2shows a single nozzle of a 1600 dpi printhead in “up shooter”configuration.

[0052] Returning again to FIG. 1, one method of construction of the inkjet print nozzles 10 will now be described. Starting with the bottomwafer layer 12, the wafer is processed so as to add CMOS layers 13 withan aperture 14 being inserted. The nitride layer 16 is laid down on topof the CMOS layers so as to protect them from subsequent etchings.

[0053] A thin sacrificial glass layer is then laid down on top ofnitride layers 16 followed by a first PTFE layer 19, the copper layer 18and a second PTFE layer 20. Then a sacrificial glass layer is formed ontop of the PTFE layer and etched to a depth of a few microns to form thenitride border regions 28. Next the top layer 29 is laid down over thesacrificial layer using the mask for forming the various holes includingthe processing step of forming the rim 40 on nozzle 30. The sacrificialglass is then dissolved away and the channel 15 formed through the waferby means of utilisation of high density low pressure plasma etching suchas that available from Surface Technology Systems.

[0054] One form of detailed manufacturing process which can be used tofabricate monolithic ink jet printheads operating in accordance with theprinciples taught by the present embodiment can proceed using thefollowing steps:

[0055] 1. Using a double sided polished wafer 12, complete drivetransistors, data distribution, and timing circuits using a 0.5 micron,one poly, 2 metal CMOS process 13. The wafer is passivated with 0.1microns of silicon nitride 16. This step is shown in FIG. 4. Forclarity, these diagrams may not be to scale, and may not represent across section though any single plane of the nozzle. FIG. 3 is a key torepresentations of various materials in these manufacturing diagrams,and those of other cross referenced ink jet configurations.

[0056] 2. Etch nitride and oxide down to silicon using Mask 1. This maskdefines the nozzle inlet below the shutter. This step is shown in FIG.5.

[0057] 3. Deposit 3 microns of sacrificial material 50 (e.g. aluminum orphotosensitive polyimide)

[0058] 4. Planarize the sacrificial layer to a thickness of 1 micronover nitride. This step is shown in FIG. 6.

[0059] 5. Etch the sacrificial layer using Mask 2. This mask defines theactuator anchor point 51. This step is shown in FIG. 7.

[0060] 6. Deposit 1 micron of PTFE 52.

[0061] 7. Etch the PTFE, nitride, and oxide down to second level metalusing Mask 3. This mask defines the heater vias 25, 26. This step isshown in FIG. 8.

[0062] 8. Deposit the heater 53, which is a 1 micron layer of aconductor with a low Young's modulus, for example aluminum or gold.

[0063] 9. Pattern the conductor using Mask 4. This step is shown in FIG.9.

[0064] 10. Deposit 1 micron of PTFE 54.

[0065] 11. Etch the PTFE down to the sacrificial layer using Mask 5.This mask defines the actuator and shutter This step is shown in FIG.10.

[0066] 12. Wafer probe. All electrical connections are complete at thispoint, bond pads are accessible, and the chips are not yet separated.

[0067] 13. Deposit 3 microns of sacrificial material 55. Planarize usingCMP

[0068] 14. Etch the sacrificial material using Mask 6. This mask definesthe nozzle chamber wall 28. This step is shown in FIG. 11.

[0069] 15. Deposit 3 microns of PECVD glass 56.

[0070] 16. Etch to a depth of (approx.) 1 micron using Mask 7. This maskdefines the nozzle rim 40. This step is shown in FIG. 12.

[0071] 17. Etch down to the sacrificial layer using Mask 6. This maskdefines the roof of the nozzle chamber, the nozzle 30, and thesacrificial etch access holes 32. This step is shown in FIG. 13.

[0072] 18. Back-etch completely through the silicon wafer (with, forexample, an ASE Advanced Silicon Etcher from Surface Technology Systems)using Mask 7. This mask defines the ink inlets 15 which are etchedthrough the wafer. The wafer is also diced by this etch. This step isshown in FIG. 14.

[0073] 19. Etch the sacrificial material. The nozzle chambers arecleared, the actuators freed, and the chips are separated by this etch.This step is shown in FIG. 15.

[0074] 20. Mount the printheads in their packaging, which may be amolded plastic former incorporating ink channels which supply theappropriate color ink to the ink inlets at the back of the wafer. Thepackage also includes a piezoelectric actuator attached to the rear ofthe ink channels. The piezoelectric actuator provides the oscillatingink pressure required for the ink jet operation.

[0075] 21. Connect the printheads to their interconnect systems. For alow profile connection with minimum disruption of airflow, TAB may beused. Wire bonding may also be used if the printer is to be operatedwith sufficient clearance to the paper.

[0076] 22. Hydrophobize the front surface of the printheads.

[0077] 23. Fill the completed printheads with ink 57 and test them. Afilled nozzle is shown in FIG. 16.

[0078] It would be appreciated by a person skilled in the art thatnumerous variations and/or modifications may be made to the presentinvention as shown in the preferred embodiment without departing fromthe spirit or scope of the invention as broadly described. The presentembodiment is, therefore, to be considered in all respects to beillustrative and not restrictive.

[0079] The presently disclosed ink jet printing technology ispotentially suited to a wide range of printing systems including: colourand monochrome office printers, short run digital printers, high speeddigital printers, offset press supplemental printers, low cost scanningprinters, high speed pagewidth printers, notebook computers with inbuiltpagewidth printers, portable colour and monochrome printers, colour andmonochrome copiers, colour and monochrome facsimile machines, combinedprinter, facsimile and copying machines, label printers, large formatplotters, photograph copiers, printers for digital photographic‘minilabs’, video printers, PhotoCD printers, portable printers forPDAs, wallpaper printers, indoor sign printers, billboard printers,fabric printers, camera printers and fault tolerant commercial printerarrays.

[0080] Ink Jet Technologies

[0081] The embodiments of the invention use an ink jet printer typedevice. Of course many different devices could be used. Howeverpresently popular ink jet printing technologies are unlikely to besuitable.

[0082] The most significant problem with thermal ink jet is powerconsumption. This is approximately 100 times that required for highspeed, and stems from the energy-inefficient means of drop ejection.This involves the rapid boiling of water to produce a vapor bubble whichexpels the ink. Water has a very high heat capacity, and must besuperheated in thermal ink jet applications. This leads to an efficiencyof around 0.02%, from electricity input to drop momentum (and increasedsurface area) out.

[0083] The most significant problem with piezoelectric ink jet is sizeand cost. Piezoelectric crystals have a very small deflection atreasonable drive voltages, and therefore require a large area for eachnozzle. Also, each piezoelectric actuator must be connected to its drivecircuit on a separate substrate. This is not a significant problem atthe current limit of around 300 nozzles per printhead, but is a majorimpediment to the fabrication of pagewidth printheads with 19,200nozzles.

[0084] Ideally, the ink jet technologies used meet the stringentrequirements of in-camera digital color printing and other high quality,high speed, low cost printing applications. To meet the requirements ofdigital photography, new ink jet technologies have been created. Thetarget features include:

[0085] low power (less than 10 Watts)

[0086] high resolution capability (1,600 dpi or more)

[0087] photographic quality output

[0088] low manufacturing cost

[0089] small size (pagewidth times minimum cross section)

[0090] high speed (<2 seconds per page).

[0091] All of these features can be met or exceeded by the ink jetsystems described below with differing levels of difficulty. Forty-fivedifferent ink jet technologies have been developed by the Assignee togive a wide range of choices for high volume manufacture. Thesetechnologies form part of separate applications assigned to the presentAssignee as set out in the table under the heading Cross References toRelated Applications.

[0092] The ink jet designs shown here are suitable for a wide range ofdigital printing systems, from battery powered one-time use digitalcameras, through to desktop and network printers, and through tocommercial printing systems.

[0093] For ease of manufacture using standard process equipment, theprinthead is designed to be a monolithic 0.5 micron CMOS chip with MEMSpost processing. For color photographic applications, the printhead is100 mm long, with a width which depends upon the ink jet type. Thesmallest printhead designed is IJ38, which is 0.35 mm wide, giving achip area of 35 square mm. The printheads each contain 19,200 nozzlesplus data and control circuitry.

[0094] Ink is supplied to the back of the printhead by injection moldedplastic ink channels. The molding requires 50 micron features, which canbe created using a lithographically micromachined insert in a standardinjection molding tool. Ink flows through holes etched through the waferto the nozzle chambers fabricated on the front surface of the wafer. Theprinthead is connected to the camera circuitry by tape automatedbonding.

[0095] Tables of Drop-on-Demand Ink Jets

[0096] Eleven important characteristics of the fundamental operation ofindividual ink jet nozzles have been identified. These characteristicsare largely orthogonal, and so can be elucidated as an elevendimensional matrix. Most of the eleven axes of this matrix includeentries developed by the present assignee.

[0097] The following tables form the axes of an eleven dimensional tableof ink jet types.

[0098] Actuator mechanism (18 types)

[0099] Basic operation mode (7 types)

[0100] Auxiliary mechanism (8 types)

[0101] Actuator amplification or modification method (17 types)

[0102] Actuator motion (19 types)

[0103] Nozzle refill method (4 types)

[0104] Method of restricting back-flow through inlet (10 types)

[0105] Nozzle clearing method (9 types)

[0106] Nozzle plate construction (9 types)

[0107] Drop ejection direction (5 types)

[0108] Ink type (7 types)

[0109] The complete eleven dimensional table represented by these axescontains 36.9 billion possible configurations of ink jet nozzle. Whilenot all of the possible combinations result in a viable ink jettechnology, many million configurations are viable. It is clearlyimpractical to elucidate all of the possible configurations. Instead,certain ink jet types have been investigated in detail. These aredesignated IJ01 to IJ45 above which matches the docket numbers in thetable under the heading Cross References to Related Applications.

[0110] Other ink jet configurations can readily be derived from theseforty-five examples by substituting alternative configurations along oneor more of the 11 axes. Most of the IJ01 to IJ45 examples can be madeinto ink jet printheads with characteristics superior to any currentlyavailable ink jet technology.

[0111] Where there are prior art examples known to the inventor, one ormore of these examples are listed in the examples column of the tablesbelow. The IJ01 to IJ45 series are also listed in the examples column.In some cases, a print technology may be listed more than once in atable, where it shares characteristics with more than one entry.

[0112] Suitable applications for the ink jet technologies include: Homeprinters, Office network printers, Short run digital printers,Commercial print systems, Fabric printers, Pocket printers, Internet WWWprinters, Video printers, Medical imaging, Wide format printers,Notebook PC printers, Fax machines, Industrial printing systems,Photocopiers, Photographic minilabs etc.

[0113] The information associated with the aforementioned 11 dimensionalmatrix are set out in the following tables. Description AdvantagesDisadvantages Examples ACTUATOR MECHANISM (APPLIED ONLY TO SELECTED INKDROPS) Thermal An electrothermal Large force High power Canon Bubblejetbubble heater heats the ink to generated Ink carrier 1979 Endo et al GBabove boiling point, Simple limited to water patent 2,007,162transferring significant construction Low efficiency Xerox heater-in-heat to the aqueous No moving parts High pit 1990 Hawkins et ink. Abubble Fast operation temperatures al U.S. Pat. No. nucleates andquickly Small chip area required 4,899,181 forms, expelling the requiredfor actuator High mechanical Hewlett-Packard ink. stress TIJ 1982 Vaughtet The efficiency of the Unusual al U.S. Pat. No. process is low, withmaterials required 4,490,728 typically less than Large drive 0.05% ofthe electrical transistors energy being Cavitation causes transformedinto actuator failure kinetic energy of the Kogation reduces drop.bubble formation Large print heads are difficult to fabricate Piezo- Apiezoelectric crystal Low power Very large area Kyser et al electricsuch as lead consumption required for actuator U.S. Pat. No. 3,946,398lanthanum zirconate Many ink types Difficult to Zoltan U.S. Pat. (PZT)is electrically can be used integrate with No. 3,683,212 activated, andeither Fast operation electronics 1973 Stemme expands, shears, or Highefficiency High voltage U.S. Pat. No. 3,747,120 bends to apply drivetransistors Epson Stylus pressure to the ink, required Tektronixejecting drops. Full pagewidth IJ04 print heads impractical due toactuator size Requires electrical poling in high field strengths duringmanufacture Electro- An electric field is Low power Low maximum SeikoEpson, strictive used to activate consumption strain (approx. Usui etall JP electrostriction in Many ink types 0.01%) 253401/96 relaxormaterials such can be used Large area IJ04 as lead lanthanum Low thermalrequired for actuator zirconate titanate expansion due to low strain(PLZT) or lead Electric field Response speed magnesium niobate strengthrequired is marginal (˜10 (PMN). (approx. 3.5 V/μm) μs) can be generatedHigh voltage without difficulty drive transistors Does not requirerequired electrical poling Full pagewidth print heads impractical due toactuator size Ferro- An electric field is Low power Difficult to IJ04electric used to induce a phase consumption integrate with transitionbetween the Many ink types electronics antiferroelectric (AFE) can beused Unusual and ferroelectric (FE) Fast operation materials such asphase. Perovskite (<1 μs) PLZSnT are materials such as tin Relativelyhigh required modified lead longitudinal strain Actuators requirelanthanum zirconate High efficiency a large area titanate (PLZSnT)Electric field exhibit large strains of strength of around 3 up to 1%associated V/μm can be readily with the AFE to FE provided phasetransition. Electro- Conductive plates are Low power Difficult to IJ02,IJ04 static plates separated by a consumption operate electrostaticcompressible or fluid Many ink types devices in an dielectric (usuallyair). can be used aqueous Upon application of a Fast operationenvironment voltage, the plates The electrostatic attract each other andactuator will displace ink, causing normally need to be drop ejection.The separated from the conductive plates may ink be in a comb or Verylarge area honeycomb structure, required to achieve or stacked toincrease high forces the surface area and High voltage therefore theforce. drive transistors may be required Full pagewidth print heads arenot competitive due to actuator size Electro- A strong electric fieldLow current High voltage 1989 Saito et al, static pull is applied to theink, consumption required U.S. Pat. No. 4,799,068 on ink whereupon Lowtemperature May be damaged 1989 Miura et al, electrostatic attraction bysparks due to air U.S. Pat. No. 4,810,954 accelerates the ink breakdownTone-jet towards the print Required field medium. strength increases asthe drop size decreases High voltage drive transistors requiredElectrostatic field attracts dust Permanent An electromagnet Low powerComplex IJ07, IJ10 magnet directly attracts a consumption fabricationelectro- permanent magnet, Many ink types Permanent magnetic displacingink and can be used magnetic material causing drop ejection. Fastoperation such as Neodymium Rare earth magnets High efficiency IronBoron (NdFeB) with a field strength Easy extension required. around 1Tesla can be from single nozzles High local used. Examples are: topagewidth print currents required Samarium Cobalt heads Copper (SaCo)and magnetic metalization should materials in the be used for longneodymium iron boron electromigration family (NdFeB, lifetime and lowNdDyFeBNb, resistivity NdDyFeB, etc) Pigmented inks are usuallyinfeasible Operating temperature limited to the Curie temperature(around 540 K) Soft A solenoid induced a Low power Complex IJ01, IJ05,IJ08, magnetic magnetic field in a soft consumption fabrication IJ10,IJ12, IJ14, core electro- magnetic core or yoke Many ink types Materialsnot IJ15, IJ17 magnetic fabricated from a can be used usually present ina ferrous material such Fast operation CMOS fab such as as electroplatediron High efficiency NiFe, CoNiFe, or alloys such as CoNiFe Easyextension CoFe are required [1], CoFe, or NiFe from single nozzles Highlocal alloys. Typically, the to pagewidth print currents required softmagnetic material heads Copper is in two parts, which ♦ metalizationshould are normally held be used for long apart by a spring.electromigration When the solenoid is lifetime and low actuated, the twoparts resistivity attract, displacing the Electroplating is ink.required High saturation flux density is required (2.0-2.1 T isachievable with CoNiFe [1]) Lorenz The Lorenz force Low power Force actsas a IJ06, IJ11, IJ13, force acting on a current consumption twistingmotion IJ16 carrying wire in a Many ink types Typically, only a magneticfield is can be used quarter of the utilized. Fast operation solenoidlength This allows the High efficiency provides force in a magneticfield to be Easy extension useful direction supplied externally to fromsingle nozzles High local the print head, for to pagewidth printcurrents required example with rare heads Copper earth permanentmetalization should magnets. be used for long Only the currentelectromigration carrying wire need be lifetime and low fabricated onthe print- resistivity head, simplifying Pigmented inks materials areusually requirements. infeasible Magneto- The actuator uses the Many inktypes Force acts as a Fischenbeck, striction giant magnetostrictive canbe used twisting motion U.S. Pat. No. 4,032,929 effect of materials Fastoperation Unusual IJ25 such as Terfenol-D (an Easy extension materialssuch as alloy of terbium, from single nozzles Terfenol-D are dysprosiumand iron to pagewidth print required developed at the Naval heads Highlocal Ordnance Laboratory, High force is currents required henceTer-Fe-NOL). available Copper For best efficiency, the metalizationshould actuator should be pre- be used for long stressed to approx. 8electromigration MPa. lifetime and low resistivity Pre-stressing may berequired Surface Ink under positive Low power Requires Silverbrook, EPtension pressure is held in a consumption supplementary force 0771 658A2 and reduction nozzle by surface Simple to effect drop related patenttension. The surface construction separation applications tension of theink is No unusual Requires special reduced below the materials requiredin ink surfactants bubble threshold, fabrication Speed may be causingthe ink to High efficiency limited by surfactant egress from the Easyextension properties nozzle. from single nozzles to pagewidth printheads Viscosity The ink viscosity is Simple Requires Silverbrook, EPreduction locally reduced to construction supplementary force 0771 658A2 and select which drops are No unusual to effect drop related patentto be ejected. A materials required in separation applications viscosityreduction can fabrication Requires special be achieved Easy extensionink viscosity electrothermally with from single nozzles properties mostinks, but special to pagewidth print High speed is inks can beengineered heads difficult to achieve for a 100:1 viscosity Requiresreduction. oscillating ink pressure A high temperature difference(typically 80 degrees) is required Acoustic An acoustic wave is Canoperate Complex drive 1993 Hadimioglu generated and without a nozzlecircuitry et al, EUP 550,192 focussed upon the plate Complex 1993 Elrodet al, drop ejection region. fabrication EUP 572,220 Low efficiency Poorcontrol of drop position Poor control of drop volume Thermo- An actuatorwhich Low power Efficient aqueous IJ03, IJ09, IJ17, elastic bend reliesupon differential consumption operation requires a IJ18, IJ19, IJ20,actuator thermal expansion Many ink types thermal insulator on IJ21,IJ22, IJ23, upon Joule heating is can be used the hot side IJ24, IJ27,IJ28, used. Simple planar Corrosion IJ29, IJ30, IJ31, fabricationprevention can be IJ32, IJ33, IJ34, Small chip area difficult IJ35,IJ36, IJ37, required for each Pigmented inks IJ38 ,IJ39, IJ40, actuatormay be infeasible, IJ41 Fast operation as pigment particles Highefficiency may jam the bend CMOS actuator compatible voltages andcurrents Standard MEMS processes can be used Easy extension from singlenozzles to pagewidth print heads High CTE A material with a very Highforce can Requires special IJ09, IJ17, IJ18, thermo- high coefficient ofbe generated material (e.g. PTFE) IJ20, IJ21, IJ22, elastic thermalexpansion Three methods of Requires a PTFE IJ23, IJ24, IJ27, actuator(CTE) such as PTFE deposition are deposition process, IJ28, IJ29, IJ30,polytetrafluoroethylene under development: which is not yet IJ31, IJ42,IJ43, (PTFE) is used. As chemical vapor standard in ULSI IJ44 high CTEmaterials deposition (CVD), fabs are usually non- spin coating, and PTFEdeposition conductive, a heater evaporation cannot be followedfabricated from a PTFE is a with high conductive material is candidatefor low temperature (above incorporated. A 50 μm dielectric constant350° C.) processing long PTFE bend insulation in ULSI Pigmented inksactuator with Very low power may be infeasible, polysilicon heater andconsumption as pigment particles 15 mW power input Many ink types mayjam the bend can provide 180 μN can be used actuator force and 10 μmSimple planar deflection. Actuator fabrication motions include: Smallchip area Bend required for each Push actuator Buckle Fast operationRotate High efficiency CMOS compatible voltages and currents Easyextension from single nozzles to pagewidth print heads Conduct-ive Apolymer with a high High force can Requires special IJ24 polymercoefficient of thermal be generated materials thermo- expansion (such asVery low power development (High elastic PTFE) is doped with consumptionCTE conductive actuator conducting substances Many ink types polymer) toincrease its can be used Requires a PTFE conductivity to about 3 Simpleplanar deposition process, orders of magnitude fabrication which is notyet below that of copper. Small chip area standard in ULSI Theconducting required for each fabs polymer expands actuator PTFEdeposition when resistively Fast operation cannot be followed heated.High efficiency with high Examples of CMOS temperature (above conductingdopants compatible voltages 350° C.) processing include: and currentsEvaporation and Carbon nanotubes Easy extension CVD deposition Metalfibers from single nozzles techniques cannot Conductive polymers topagewidth print be used such as doped heads Pigmented inks polythiophenemay be infeasible, Carbon granules as pigment particles may jam the bendactuator Shape A shape memory alloy High force is Fatigue limits IJ26memory such as TiNi (also available (stresses maximum number alloy knownas Nitinol - of hundreds of MPa) of cycles Nickel Titanium alloy Largestrain is Low strain (1%) developed at the Naval available (more than isrequired to extend Ordnance Laboratory) 3%) fatigue resistance isthermally switched High corrosion Cycle rate between its weak resistancelimited by heat martensitic state and Simple removal its high stiffnessconstruction Requires unusual austenic state. The Easy extensionmaterials (TiNi) shape of the actuator from single nozzles The latentheat of in its martensitic state to pagewidth print transformation mustis deformed relative to heads be provided the austenic shape. Lowvoltage High current The shape change operation operation causesejection of a Requires pre- drop. stressing to distort the martensiticstate Linear Linear magnetic Linear Magnetic Requires unusual IJ12Magnetic actuators include the actuators can be semiconductor ActuatorLinear Induction constructed with materials such as Actuator (LIA),Linear high thrust, long soft magnetic alloys Permanent Magnet travel,and high (e.g. CoNiFe) Synchronous Actuator efficiency using Somevarieties (LPMSA), Linear planar also require Reluctance semiconductorpermanent magnetic Synchronous Actuator fabrication materials such as(LRSA), Linear techniques Neodymium iron Switched Reluctance Longactuator boron (NdFeB) Actuator (LSRA), and travel is available Requiresthe Linear Stepper Medium force is complex multi- Actuator (LSA).available phase drive circuitry Low voltage High current operationoperation BASIC OPERATION MODE Actuator This is the simplest Simpleoperation Drop repetition Thermal ink jet directly mode of operation:the No external rate is usually Piezoelectric ink pushes ink actuatordirectly fields required limited to around 10 jet supplies sufficientSatellite drops kHz. However, this IJ01, IJ02, IJ03, kinetic energy toexpel can be avoided if is not fundamental IJ04, IJ05, IJ06, the drop.The drop drop velocity is less to the method, but is IJ07, IJ09, IJ11,must have a sufficient than 4 m/s related to the refill IJ12, IJ14,IJ16, velocity to overcome Can be efficient, method normally IJ20, IJ22,IJ23, the surface tension. depending upon the used IJ24, IJ25, IJ26,actuator used All of the drop IJ27, IJ28, IJ29, kinetic energy mustIJ30, IJ31, IJ32, be provided by the IJ33, IJ34, IJ35, actuator IJ36,IJ37, IJ38, Satellite drops IJ39, IJ40, IJ41, usually form if drop IJ42,IJ43, IJ44 velocity is greater than 4.5 m/s Proximity The drops to beVery simple print Requires close Silverbrook, EP printed are selected byhead fabrication can proximity between 0771 658 A2 and some manner (e.g.be used the print head and related patent thermally induced The drop theprint media or applications surface tension selection means transferroller reduction of does not need to May require two pressurized ink).provide the energy print heads printing Selected drops are required toseparate alternate rows of the separated from the ink the drop from theimage in the nozzle by nozzle Monolithic color contact with the printprint heads are medium or a transfer difficult roller. Electro- Thedrops to be Very simple print Requires very Silverbrook, EP static pullprinted are selected by head fabrication can high electrostatic 0771 658A2 and on ink some manner (e.g. be used field related patent thermallyinduced The drop Electrostatic field applications surface tensionselection means for small nozzle Tone-Jet reduction of does not need tosizes is above air pressurized ink). provide the energy breakdownSelected drops are required to separate Electrostatic field separatedfrom the ink the drop from the may attract dust in the nozzle by anozzle strong electric field. Magnetic The drops to be Very simple printRequires Silverbrook, EP pull on ink printed are selected by headfabrication can magnetic ink 0771 658 A2 and some manner (e.g. be usedInk colors other related patent thermally induced The drop than blackare applications surface tension selection means difficult reduction ofdoes not need to Requires very pressurized ink). provide the energy highmagnetic fields Selected drops are required to separate separated fromthe ink the drop from the in the nozzle by a nozzle strong magneticfield acting on the magnetic ink. Shutter The actuator moves a Highspeed (>50 Moving parts are IJ13, IJ17, IJ21 shutter to block ink kHz)operation can required flow to the nozzle. The be achieved due toRequires ink ink pressure is pulsed reduced refill time pressuremodulator at a multiple of the Drop timing can Friction and wear dropejection be very accurate must be considered frequency. The actuatorStiction is energy can be very possible low Shuttered The actuator movesa Actuators with Moving parts are IJ08, IJ15, IJ18, grill shutter toblock ink small travel can be required IJ19 flow through a grill to usedRequires ink the nozzle. The shutter Actuators with pressure modulatormovement need only small force can be Friction and wear be equal to thewidth used must be considered of thegrill holes. High speed (>50Stiction is kHz) operation can possible be achieved Pulsed A pulsedmagnetic Extremely low Requires an IJ10 magnetic field attracts an ‘inkenergy operation is external pulsed pull on ink pusher’ at the droppossible magnetic field pusher ejection frequency. An No heat Requiresspecial actuator controls a dissipation materials for both catch, whichprevents problems the actuator and the the ink pusher from ink pushermoving when a drop is Complex not to be ejected. construction AUXILIARYMECHANISM (APPLIED TO ALL NOZZLES) None The actuator directly Simplicityof Drop ejection Most ink jets, fires the ink drop, and constructionenergy must be including there is no external Simplicity of supplied bypiezoelectric and field or other operation individual nozzle thermalbubble. mechanism required. Small physical actuator IJ01, IJ02, IJ03,size IJ04, IJ05, IJ07, IJ09, IJ11, IJ12, IJ14, IJ20, IJ22, IJ23, IJ24,IJ25, IJ26, IJ27, IJ28, IJ29, IJ30, IJ31, IJ32, IJ33, IJ34, IJ35, IJ36,IJ37, IJ38, IJ39, IJ40, IJ41, IJ42, IJ43, IJ44 Oscillating The inkpressure Oscillating ink Requires external Silverbrook, EP ink pressureoscillates, providing pressure can provide ink pressure 0771 658 A2 and(including much of the drop a refill pulse, oscillator related patentacoustic ejection energy. The allowing higher Ink pressure applicationsstimul- actuator selects which operating speed phase and amplitude IJ08,IJ13, IJ15, ation) drops are to be fired The actuators must be carefullyIJ17, IJ18, IJ19, by selectively may operate with controlled IJ21blocking or enabling much lower energy Acoustic nozzles. The inkAcoustic lenses reflections in the ink pressure oscillation can be usedto focus chamber must be may be achieved by the sound on the designedfor vibrating the print nozzles head, or preferably by an actuator inthe ink supply. Media The print head is Low power Precision Silverbrook,EP proximity placed in close High accuracy assembly required 0771 658 A2and proximity to the print Simple print head Paper fibers may relatedpatent medium. Selected construction cause problems applications dropsprotrude from Cannot print on the print head further rough substratesthan unselected drops, and contact the print medium. The drop soaks intothe medium fast enough to cause drop separation. Transfer Drops areprinted to a High accuracy Bulky Silverbrook, EP roller transfer rollerinstead Wide range of Expensive 0771 658 A2 and of straight to the printprint substrates can Complex related patent medium. A transfer be usedconstruction applications roller can also be used Ink can be driedTektronix hot for proximity drop on the transfer roller meltpiezoelectric separation. ink jet Any of the IJ series Electro- Anelectric field is Low power Field strength Silverbrook, EP static usedto accelerate Simple print head required for 0771 658 A2 and selecteddrops towards construction separation of small related patent the printmedium. drops is near or applications above air Tone-Jet breakdownDirect A magnetic field is Low power Requires Silverbrook, EP magneticused to accelerate Simple print head magnetic ink 0771 658 A2 and fieldselected drops of construction Requires strong related patent magneticink towards magnetic field applications the print medium. Cross Theprint head is Does not require Requires external IJ06, IJ16 magneticplaced in a constant magnetic materials magnet field magnetic field. Theto be integrated in Current densities Lorenz force in a the print headmay be high, current carrying wire manufacturing resulting in is used tomove the process electromigration actuator. problems Pulsed A pulsedmagnetic Very low power Complex print IJ10 magnetic field is used tooperation is possible head construction field cyclically attract a Smallprint head Magnetic paddle, which pushes size materials required in onthe ink. A small print head actuator moves a catch, which selectivelyprevents the paddle from moving. ACTUATOR AMPLIFICATION OR MODIFICATIONMETHOD None No actuator Operational Many actuator Thermal Bubblemechanical simplicity mechanisms have InkJet amplification is used.insufficient travel, IJ01, IJ02, IJ06, The actuator directly orinsufficient force, IJ07, IJ16, IJ25, drives the drop to efficientlydrive IJ26 ejection process. the drop ejection process Differential Anactuator material Provides greater High stresses are Piezoelectricexpansion expands more on one travel in a reduced involved IJ03, IJ09,IJ17, bend side than on the other. print head area Care must be IJ18,IJ19, IJ20, actuator The expansion may be taken that the IJ21, IJ22,IJ23, thermal, piezoelectric, materials do not IJ24, IJ27, IJ29,magnetostrictive, or delaminate IJ30, IJ31, IJ32, other mechanism. TheResidual bend IJ33, IJ34, IJ35, bend actuator converts resulting fromhigh IJ36, IJ37, IJ38, a high force low travel temperature or high IJ39,IJ42, IJ43, actuator mechanism to stress during IJ44 high travel, lowerformation force mechanism. Transient A trilayer bend Very good Highstresses are IJ40, IJ41 bend actuator where the two temperaturestability involved actuator outside layers are High speed, as a Caremust be identical. This cancels new drop can be taken that the bend dueto ambient fired before heat materials do not temperature and dissipatesdelaminate residual stress. The Cancels residual actuator only respondsstress of formation to transient heating of one side or the other.Reverse The actuator loads a Better coupling Fabrication IJ05, IJ11spring spring. When the to the ink complexity actuator is turned off,High stress in the the spring releases. spring This can reverse theforce/distance curve of the actuator to make it compatible with theforce/time requirements of the drop ejection. Actuator A series of thinIncreased travel Increased Some stack actuators are stacked. Reduceddrive fabrication piezoelectric ink jets This can be voltage complexityIJ04 appropriate where Increased actuators require high possibility ofshort electric field strength, circuits due to such as electrostaticpinholes and piezoelectric actuators. Multiple Multiple smallerIncreases the Actuator forces IJ12, IJ13, IJ18, actuators actuators areused force available from may not add IJ20, IJ22, IJ28, simultaneouslyto an actuator linearly, reducing IJ42, IJ43 move the ink. Each Multipleefficiency actuator need provide actuators can be only a portion of thepositioned to control force required. ink flow accurately Linear Alinear spring is used Matches low Requires print IJ15 Spring totransform a motion travel actuator with head area for the with smalltravel and higher travel spring high force into a requirements longertravel, lower Non-contact force motion. method of motion transformationCoiled A bend actuator is Increases travel Generally IJ17, IJ21, IJ34,actuator coiled to provide Reduces chip restricted to planar IJ35greater travel in a area implementations reduced chip area. Planar dueto extreme implementations are fabrication difficulty relatively easy toin other orientations. fabricate. Flexure A bend actuator has a Simplemeans of Care must be IJ10, IJ19, IJ33 bend small region near theincreasing travel of taken not to exceed actuator fixture point, which abend actuator the elastic limit in flexes much more the flexure areareadily than the Stress remainder of the distribution is very actuator.The actuator uneven flexing is effectively Difficult to converted froman accurately model even coiling to an with finite element angular bend,resulting analysis in greater travel of the actuator tip. Catch Theactuator controls a Very low Complex IJ10 small catch. The catchactuator energy construction either enables or Very small Requiresexternal disables movement of actuator size force an ink pusher that isUnsuitable for controlled in a bulk pigmented inks manner. Gears Gearscan be used to Low force, low Moving parts are IJ13 increase travel atthe travel actuators can required expense of duration. be used Severalactuator Circular gears, rack Can be fabricated cycles are required andpinion, ratchets, using standard More complex and other gearing surfaceMEMS drive electronics methods can be used. processes Complexconstruction Friction, friction, and wear are possible Buckle plate Abuckle plate can be Very fast Must stay within S. Hirata et al, used tochange a slow movement elastic limits of the “An Ink-jet Head actuatorinto a fast achievable materials for long Using Diaphragm motion. It canalso device life Microactuator”, convert a high force, High stressesProc. IEEE MEMS, low travel actuator involved Feb. 1996, pp 418- into ahigh travel, Generally high 423. medium force motion. power requirementIJ18, IJ27 Tapered A tapered magnetic Linearizes the Complex IJ14magnetic pole can increase magnetic construction pole travel at theexpense force/distance curve of force. Lever A lever and fulcrum isMatches low High stress IJ32, IJ36, IJ37 used to transform a travelactuator with around the fulcrum motion with small higher travel traveland high force requirements into a motion with Fulcrum area has longertravel and no linear movement, lower force. The lever and can be usedfor can also reverse the a fluid seal direction of travel. Rotary Theactuator is High mechanical Complex IJ28 impeller connected to a rotaryadvantage construction impeller. A small The ratio of force Unsuitablefor angular deflection of to travel of the pigmented inks the actuatorresults in actuator can be a rotation of the matched to the impellervanes, which nozzle requirements push the ink against by varying thestationary vanes and number of impeller out of the nozzle. vanesAcoustic A refractive or No moving parts Large area 1993 Hadimioglu lensdiffractive (e.g. zone required et al, EUP 550,192 plate) acoustic lensis Only relevant for 1993 Elrod et al, used to concentrate acoustic inkjets EUP 572,220 sound waves. Sharp A sharp point is used SimpleDifficult to Tone-jet conductive to concentrate an constructionfabricate using point electrostatic field. standard VLSI processes for asurface ejecting ink- jet Only relevant for electrostatic ink jetsACTUATOR MOTION Volume The volume of the Simple High energy isHewlett-Packard expansion actuator changes, construction in thetypically required to Thermal Ink jet pushing the ink in all case ofthermal ink achieve volume Canon Bubblejet directions. jet expansion.This leads to thermal stress, cavitation, and kogation in thermal inkjet implementations Linear, The actuator moves in Efficient Highfabrication IJ01, IJ02, IJ04, normal to a direction normal to couplingto ink complexity may be IJ07, IJ11, IJ14 chip surface the print headsurface. drops ejected required to achieve The nozzle is typicallynormal to the perpendicular in the line of surface motion movement.Parallel to The actuator moves Suitable for Fabrication IJ12, IJ13,IJ15, chip surface parallel to the print planar fabrication complexityIJ33,, IJ34, IJ35, head surface. Drop Friction IJ36 ejection may stillbe Stiction normal to the surface. Membrane An actuator with a Theeffective Fabrication 1982 Howkins push high force but small area of theactuator complexity U.S. Pat. No. 4,459,601 area is used to push abecomes the Actuator size stiff membrane that is membrane areaDifficulty of in contact with the ink. integration in a VLSI processRotary The actuator causes Rotary levers Device IJ05, IJ08, IJ13, therotation of some may be used to complexity IJ28 element, such a grill orincrease travel May have impeller Small chip area friction at a pivotrequirements point Bend The actuator bends A very small Requires the1970 Kyser et al when energized. This change in actuator to be made U.S.Pat. No. 3,946,398 may be due to dimensions can be from at least two1973 Stemme differential thermal converted to a large distinct layers,or to U.S. Pat. No. 3,747,120 expansion, motion. have a thermal IJ03,IJ09, IJ10, piezoelectric difference across the IJ19, IJ23, IJ24,expansion, actuator IJ25, IJ29, IJ30, magnetostriction, or IJ31, IJ33,IJ34, other form of relative IJ35 dimensional change. Swivel Theactuator swivels Allows operation Inefficient IJ06 around a centralpivot. where the net linear coupling to the ink This motion is suitableforce on the paddle motion where there are is zero opposite forces Smallchip area applied to opposite requirements sides of the paddle, e.g.Lorenz force. Straighten The actuator is Can be used with Requirescareful IJ26, IJ32 normally bent, and shape memory balance of stressesstraightens when alloys where the to ensure that the energized. austenicphase is quiescent bend is planar accurate Double The actuator bends inOne actuator can Difficult to make IJ36, IJ37, IJ38 bend one directionwhen be used to power the drops ejected by one element is two nozzles.both bend directions energized, and bends Reduced chip identical. theother way when size. A small another element is Not sensitive toefficiency loss energized. ambient temperature compared to equivalentsingle bend actuators. Shear Energizing the Can increase the Not readily1985 Fishbeck actuator causes a shear effective travel of applicable toother U.S. Pat. No. 4,584,590 motion in the actuator piezoelectricactuator material. actuators mechanisms Radial con- The actuatorsqueezes Relatively easy High force 1970 Zoltan striction an inkreservoir, to fabricate single required U.S. Pat. No. 3,683,212 forcingink from a nozzles from glass Inefficient constricted nozzle. tubing asDifficult to macroscopic integrate with VLSI structures processesCoil/uncoil A coiled actuator Easy to fabricate Difficult to IJ17, IJ21,IJ34, uncoils or coils more as a planar VLSI fabricate for non- IJ35tightly. The motion of process planar devices the free end of the Smallarea Poor out-of-plane actuator ejects the ink. required, thereforestiffness low cost Bow The actuator bows (or Can increase the Maximumtravel IJ16, IJ18, IJ27 buckles) in the middle speed of travel isconstrained when energized. Mechanically High force rigid requiredPush-Pull Two actuators control The structure is Not readily IJ18 ashutter. One actuator pinned at both ends, suitable for ink jets pullsthe shutter, and so has a high out-of- which directly push the otherpushes it. plane rigidity the ink Curl A set of actuators curl Goodfluid flow Design IJ20, IJ42 inwards inwards to reduce the to the regionbehind complexity volume of ink that the actuator they enclose.increases efficiency Curl A set of actuators curl Relatively simpleRelatively large IJ43 outwards outwards, pressurizing construction chiparea ink in a chamber surrounding the actuators, and expelling ink froma nozzle in the chamber. Iris Multiple vanes enclose High efficiencyHigh fabrication IJ22 a volume of ink. These Small chip area complexitysimultaneously rotate, Not suitable for reducing the volume pigmentedinks between the vanes. Acoustic The actuator vibrates The actuator canLarge area 1993 Hadimioglu vibration at a high frequency. be physicallydistant required for et al, EUP 550,192 from the ink efficient operation1993 Elrod et al, at useful frequencies EUP 572,220 Acoustic couplingand crosstalk Complex drive circuitry Poor control of drop volume andposition None In various ink jet No moving parts Various otherSilverbrook, EP designs the actuator tradeoffs are 0771 658 A2 and doesnot move. required to related patent eliminate moving applications partsTone-jet NOZZLE REFILL METHOD Surface This is the normal way FabricationLow speed Thermal ink jet tension that ink jets are simplicity Surfacetension Piezoelectric ink refilled. After the Operational forcerelatively jet actuator is energized, simplicity small compared toIJ01-IJ07, IJ10- it typically returns actuator force IJ14, IJ16, IJ20,rapidly to its normal Long refill time IJ22-IJ45 position. This rapidusually dominates return sucks in air the total repetition through thenozzle rate opening. The ink surface tension at the nozzle then exerts asmall force restoring the meniscus to a minimum area. This force refillsthe nozzle. Shuttered Ink to the nozzle High speed Requires IJ08, IJ13,IJ15, oscillating chamber is provided at Low actuator common ink IJ17,IJ18, IJ19, ink pressure a pressure that energy, as the pressureoscillator IJ21 oscillates at twice the actuator need only May not bedrop ejection open or close the suitable for frequency. When a shutter,instead of pigmented inks drop is to be ejected, ejecting the ink dropthe shutter is opened for 3 half cycles: drop ejection, actuator return,and refill. The shutter is then closed to prevent the nozzle chamberemptying during the next negative pressure cycle. Refill After the mainHigh speed, as Requires two IJ09 actuator actuator has ejected a thenozzle is independent drop a second (refill) actively refilled actuatorsper nozzle actuator is energized. The refill actuator pushes ink intothe nozzle chamber. The refill actuator returns slowly, to prevent itsreturn from emptying the chamber again. Positive ink The ink is held aslight High refill rate, Surface spill Silverbrook, EP pressure positivepressure. therefore a high must be prevented 0771 658 A2 and After theink drop is drop repetition rate Highly related patent ejected, thenozzle is possible hydrophobic print applications chamber fills quicklyhead surfaces are Alternative for:, as surface tension and requiredIJ01-IJ07, IJ10-IJ14, ink pressure both IJ16, IJ20, IJ22-IJ45 operate torefill the nozzle. METHOD OF RESTRICTING BACK-FLOW THROUGH INLET Longinlet The ink inlet channel Design simplicity Restricts refill Thermalink jet channel to the nozzle chamber Operational rate Piezoelectric inkis made long and simplicity May result in a jet relatively narrow,Reduces relatively large chip IJ42, IJ43 relying on viscous crosstalkarea drag to reduce inlet Only partially back-flow. effective Positiveink The ink is under a Drop selection Requires a Silverbrook, EPpressure positive pressure, so and separation method (such as a 0771 658A2 and that in the quiescent forces can be nozzle rim or related patentstate some of the ink reduced effective applications drop alreadyprotrudes Fast refill time hydrophobizing, or Possible from the nozzle.both) to prevent operation of the This reduces the flooding of thefollowing: IJ01- pressure in the nozzle ejection surface of IJ07,IJ09-IJ12, chamber which is the print head. IJ14, IJ16, IJ20, requiredto eject a IJ22,, IJ23-IJ34, certain volume of ink. IJ36-IJ41, IJ44 Thereduction in chamber pressure results in a reduction in ink pushed outthrough the inlet. Baffle One or more baffles The refill rate is DesignHP Thermal Ink are placed in the inlet not as restricted as complexityJet ink flow. When the the long inlet May increase Tektronix actuator isenergized, method. fabrication piezoelectric ink jet the rapid inkReduces complexity (e.g. movement creates crosstalk Tektronix hot melteddies which restrict Piezoelectric print the flow through the heads).inlet. The slower refill process is unrestricted, and does not result ineddies. Flexible flap In this method recently Significantly Notapplicable to Canon restricts disclosed by Canon, reduces back-flow mostink jet inlet the expanding actuator for edge-shooter configurations(bubble) pushes on a thermal ink jet Increased flexible flap thatdevices fabrication restricts the inlet. complexity Inelasticdeformation of polymer flap results in creep over extended use InletFilter A filter is located Additional Restricts refill IJ04, IJ12, IJ24,between the ink inlet advantage of ink rate IJ27, IJ29, IJ30 and thenozzle filtration May result in chamber. The filter Ink filter may becomplex has a multitude of fabricated with no construction small holesor slots, additional process restricting ink flow. steps The filter alsoremoves particles which may block the nozzle. Small inlet The ink inletchannel Design simplicity Restricts refill IJ02, IJ37, IJ44 compared tothe nozzle chamber rate to nozzle has a substantially May result in asmaller cross section relatively large chip than that of the nozzle,area resulting in easier ink Only partially egress out of the effectivenozzle than out of the inlet. Inlet shutter A secondary actuatorIncreases speed Requires separate IJ09 controls the position of of theink-jet print refill actuator and a shutter, closing off head operationdrive circuit the ink inlet when the main actuator is energized. Theinlet is The method avoids the Back-flow Requires careful IJ01, IJ03,1J05, located problem of inlet back- problem is design to minimize IJ06,IJ07, IJ10, behind the flow by arranging the eliminated the negativeIJ11, IJ14, IJ16, ink-pushing ink-pushing surface of pressure behind theIJ22, IJ23, IJ25, surface the actuator between paddle IJ28, IJ31, IJ32,the inlet and the IJ33, IJ34, IJ35, nozzle. IJ36, IJ39, IJ40, IJ41 Partof the The actuator and a Significant Small increase in IJ07, IJ20,IJ26, actuator wall of the ink reductions in back- fabrication IJ38moves to chamber are arranged flow can be complexity shut off the sothat the motion of achieved inlet the actuator closes off Compactdesigns the inlet. possible Nozzle In some configurations Ink back-flowNone related to Silverbrook, EP actuator of ink jet, there is no problemis ink back-flow on 0771 658 A2 and does not expansion or eliminatedactuation related patent result in ink movement of an applicationsback-flow actuator which may Valve-jet cause ink back-flow Tone-jetthrough the inlet. NOZZLE CLEARING METHOD Normal All of the nozzles areNo added May not be Most ink jet nozzle firing fired periodically,complexity on the sufficient to systems before the ink has a print headdisplace dried ink IJ01, IJ02, IJ03, chance to dry. When IJ04, IJ05,IJ06, not in use the nozzles IJ07, IJ09, IJ10, are sealed (capped) IJ11,IJ12, IJ14, against air. IJ16, IJ20, IJ22, The nozzle firing is IJ23,IJ24, IJ25, usually performed IJ26, IJ27, IJ28, during a special IJ29,1J30, IJ31, clearing cycle, after IJ32, IJ33, IJ34, first moving theprint IJ36, IJ37, IJ38, head to a cleaning IJ39, IJ40,, IJ41, station.IJ42, IJ43, IJ44,, IJ45 Extra In systems which heat Can be highlyRequires higher Silverbrook, EP power to the ink, but do not boileffective if the drive voltage for 0771 658 A2 and ink heater it undernormal heater is adjacent to clearing related patent situations, nozzlethe nozzle May require applications clearing can be larger driveachieved by over- transistors powering the heater and boiling ink at thenozzle. Rapid The actuator is fired in Does not require EffectivenessMay be used success-ion rapid succession. In extra drive circuitsdepends with: IJ01, IJ02, of actuator some configurations, on the printhead substantially upon IJ03, IJ04, IJ05, pulses this may cause heat Canbe readily the configuration of IJ06, IJ07, IJ09, build-up at the nozzlecontrolled and the ink jet nozzle IJ10, IJ11, IJ14, which boils the ink,initiated by digital IJ16, IJ20, IJ22, clearing the nozzle. In logicIJ23, IJ24, IJ25, other situations, it may IJ27, IJ28, IJ29, causesufficient IJ30, IJ31, IJ32, vibrations to dislodge IJ33, IJ34, IJ36,clogged nozzles. IJ37, IJ38, IJ39, IJ40, IJ41, IJ42, IJ43, IJ44, IJ45Extra Where an actuator is A simple Not suitable May be used power tonot normally driven to solution where where there is a with: IJ03, IJ09,ink pushing the limit of its motion, applicable hard limit to IJ16,IJ20, IJ23, actuator nozzle clearing may be actuator movement IJ24,IJ25, IJ27, assisted by providing IJ29, IJ30, IJ31, an enhanced driveIJ32, IJ39, IJ40, signal to the actuator. IJ41, IJ42, IJ43, IJ44, IJ45Acoustic An ultrasonic wave is A high nozzle High IJ08, IJ13, IJ15,resonance applied to the ink clearing capability implementation costIJ17, IJ18, IJ19, chamber. This wave is can be achieved if system doesnot IJ21 of an appropriate May be already include an amplitude andimplemented at very acoustic actuator frequency to cause low cost insystems sufficient force at the which already nozzle to clear includeacoustic blockages. This is actuators easiest to achieve if theultrasonic wave is at a resonant frequency of the ink cavity. Nozzle Amicrofabricated Can clear Accurate Silverbrook, EP clearing plate ispushed against severely clogged mechanical 0771 658 A2 and plate thenozzles. The plate nozzles alignment is related patent has a post forevery required applications nozzle. A post moves Moving parts arethrough each nozzle, required displacing dried ink. There is risk ofdamage to the nozzles Accurate fabrication is required Ink The pressureof the ink May be effective Requires May be used pressure is temporarilywhere other pressure pump or with all IJ series ink pulse increased sothat ink methods cannot be other pressure jets streams from all of theused actuator nozzles. This may be Expensive used in conjunctionWasteful of ink with actuator energizing. Print head A flexible ‘blade’is Effective for Difficult to use if Many ink jet wiper wiped across theprint planar print head print head surface is systems head surface. Thesurfaces non-planar or very blade is usually Low cost fragile fabricatedfrom a Requires flexible polymer, e.g. mechanical parts rubber orsynthetic Blade can wear elastomer. out in high volume print systemsSeparate A separate heater is Can be effective Fabrication Can be usedwith ink boiling provided at the nozzle where other nozzle complexitymany IJ series ink heater although the normal clearing methods jets drope-ection cannot be used mechanism does not Can be require it. Theheaters implemented at no do not require additional cost in individualdrive some ink jet circuits, as many configurations nozzles can becleared simultaneously, and no imaging is required. NOZZLE PLATECONSTRUCTION Electro- A nozzle plate is Fabrication High Hewlett Packardformed separately fabricated simplicity temperatures and Thermal Ink jetnickel from electroformed pressures are nickel, and bonded to requiredto bond the print head chip. nozzle plate Minimum thickness constraintsDifferential thermal expansion Laser Individual nozzle No masks Eachhole must Canon Bubblejet ablated or holes are ablated by an required beindividually 1988 Sercel et drilled intense UV laser in a Can be quitefast formed al., SPIE, Vol. 998 polymer nozzle plate, which is Somecontrol Special Excimer Beam typically a polymer over nozzle profileequipment required Applications, pp. such as polyimide or is possibleSlow where there 76-83 polysulphone Equipment are many thousands 1993Watanabe required is relatively of nozzles per print et al., U.S. Pat.No. low cost head 5,208,604 May produce thin burrs at exit holes SiliconA separate nozzle High accuracy is Two part K. Bean, IEEE micro- plateis attainable construction Transactions on machined micromachined fromHigh cost Electron Devices, single crystal silicon, Requires Vol. ED-25,No. 10, and bonded to the precision alignment 1978, pp 1185-1195 printhead wafer. Nozzles may be Xerox 1990 clogged by adhesive Hawkins etal., U.S. Pat. No. 4,899,181 Glass Fineglass capillaries No expensiveVery small 1970 Zoltan capillaries are drawn from glass equipmentrequired nozzle sizes are U.S. Pat. No. 3,683,212 tubing. This methodSimple to make difficult to form has been used for single nozzles Notsuited for making individual mass production nozzles, but is difficultto use for bulk manufacturing of print heads with thousands of nozzles.Monolithic, The nozzle plate is High accuracy Requires Silverbrook, EPsurface deposited as a layer (<1 μm) sacrificial layer 0771 658 A2 andmicro- using standard VLSI Monolithic under the nozzle related patentmachined deposition techniques. Low cost plate to form the applicationsusing VLSI Nozzles are etched in Existing nozzle chamber IJ01, IJ02,IJ04, litho- the nozzle plate using processes can be Surface may beIJ11, IJ12, IJ17, graphic VLSI lithography and used fragile to the touchIJ18, IJ20, IJ22, processes etching. IJ24, IJ27, IJ28, IJ29, IJ30, IJ31,IJ32, IJ33, IJ34, IJ36, IJ37, IJ38, IJ39, IJ40, IJ41, IJ42, IJ43, IJ44Monolithic, The nozzle plate is a High accuracy Requires long IJ03,IJ05, IJ06, etched buried etch stop in the (<1 μm) etch times IJ07,IJ08, IJ09, through wafer. Nozzle Monolithic Requires a IJ10, IJ13,IJ14, substrate chambers are etched in Low cost support wafer IJ15,IJ16, IJ19, the front of the wafer, No differential IJ21, IJ23, IJ25,and the wafer is expansion IJ26 thinned from the back side. Nozzles arethen etched in the etch stop layer. No nozzle Various methods have Nonozzles to Difficult to Ricoh 1995 plate been tried to eliminate becomeclogged control drop Sekiya et al the nozzles entirely, to positionaccurately U.S. Pat. No. 5,412,413 prevent nozzle Crosstalk 1993Hadimioglu clogging. These problems et al EUP 550,192 include thermalbubble 1993 Elrod et al mechanisms and EUP 572,220 acoustic lensmechanisms Trough Each drop ejector has Reduced Drop firing IJ35 atrough through manufacturing direction is sensitive which a paddlemoves. complexity to wicking. There is no nozzle Monolithic plate.Nozzle slit The elimination of No nozzles to Difficult to 1989 Saito etal instead of nozzle holes and become clogged control drop U.S. Pat. No.4,799,068 individual replacement by a slit position accurately nozzlesencompassing many Crosstalk actuator positions problems reduces nozzleclogging, but increases crosstalk due to ink surface waves DROP EJECTIONDIRECTION Edge Ink flow is along the Simple Nozzles limited CanonBubblejet (‘edge surface of the chip, construction to edge 1979 Endo etal GB shooter’) and ink drops are No silicon High resolution patent2,007,162 ejected from the chip etching required is difficult Xeroxheater-in- edge. Good heat Fast color pit 1990 Hawkins et al sinking viasubstrate printing requires U.S. Pat. No. 4,899,181 Mechanically oneprint head per Tone-jet strong color Ease of chip handing Surface Inkflow is along the No bulk silicon Maximum ink Hewlett-Packard (‘roofsurface of the chip, etching required flow is severely TIJ 1982 Vaughtet al shooter’) and ink drops are Silicon can make restricted U.S. Pat.No. 4,490,728 ejected from the chip an effective heat IJ02, IJ11, IJ12,surface, normal to the sink IJ20, IJ22 plane of the chip. Mechanicalstrength Through Ink flow is through the High ink flow Requires bulkSilverbrook, EP chip, chip, and ink drops are Suitable for siliconetching 0771 658 A2 and forward ejected from the front pagewidth printrelated patent (‘up surface of the chip. heads applications shooter’)High nozzle IJ04, IJ17, IJ18, packing density IJ24, IJ27-IJ45 thereforelow manufacturing cost Through Ink flow is through the High ink flowRequires wafer IJ01, IJ03, IJ05, chip, chip, and ink drops are Suitablefor thinning IJ06, IJ07, IJ08, reverse ejected from the rear pagewidthprint Requires special IJ09, IJ10, IJ13, (‘down surface of the chip.heads handling during IJ14, IJ15, IJ16, shooter’) High nozzlemanufacture IJ19, IJ21, IJ23, packing density IJ25, IJ26 therefore lowmanufacturing cost Through Ink flow is through the Suitable forPagewidth print Epson Stylus actuator actuator, which is notpiezoelectric print heads require Tektronix hot fabricated as part ofheads several thousand melt piezoelectric the same substrate asconnections to drive ink jets the drive transistors. circuits Cannot bemanufactured in standard CMOS fabs Complex assembly required INK TYPEAqueous, Water based ink which Environmentally Slow drying Most existingink dye typically contains: friendly Corrosive jets water, dye,surfactant, No odor Bleeds on paper All IJ series ink humectant, and Mayjets biocide. strikethrough Silverbrook, EP Modern ink dyes have Cocklespaper 0771 658 A2 and high water-fastness, related patent light fastnessapplications Aqueous, Water based ink which Environmentally Slow dryingIJ02, IJ04, IJ21, pigment typically contains: friendly Corrosive IJ26,IJ27, IJ30 water, pigment, No odor Pigment may Silverbrook, EPsurfactant, humectant, Reduced bleed clog nozzles 0771 658 A2 and andbiocide. Reduced wicking Pigment may related patent Pigments have anReduced clog actuator applications advantage in reduced strikethroughmechanisms Piezoelectric ink- bleed, wicking and Cockles paper jetsstrikethrough. Thermal ink jets (with significant restrictions) MethylMEK is a highly Very fast drying Odorous All IJ series ink Ethylvolatile solvent used Prints on various Flammable jets Ketone forindustrial printing substrates such as (MEK) on difficult surfacesmetals and plastics such as aluminum cans. Alcohol Alcohol based inksFast drying Slight odor All IJ series ink (ethanol, 2- can be used wherethe Operates at sub- Flammable jets butanol, printer must operate atfreezing and others) temperatures below temperatures the freezing pointof Reduced paper water. An example of cockle this is in-camera Low costconsumer photographic printing. Phase The ink is solid at No dryingtime- High viscosity Tektronix hot change room temperature, and inkinstantly freezes Printed ink melt piezoelectric (hot melt) is melted inthe print on the print medium typically has a ink jets head beforejetting. Almost any print ‘waxy’ feel 1989 Nowak Hot melt inks aremedium can be used Printed pages U.S. Pat. No. usually wax based, Nopaper cockle may ‘block’ 4,820,346 with a melting point occurs Inktemperature All IJ series ink around 80° C. After No wicking may beabove the jets jetting the ink freezes occurs curie point of almostinstantly upon No bleed occurs permanent magnets contacting the print Nostrikethrough Ink heaters medium or a transfer occurs consume powerroller. Long warm-up time Oil Oil based inks are High solubility Highviscosity: All IJ series ink extensively used in medium for some this isa significant jets offset printing. They dyes limitation for use in haveadvantages in Does not cockle ink jets, which improved paper usuallyrequire a characteristics on Does not wick low viscosity. Some paper(especially no through paper short chain and wicking or cockle).multi-branched oils Oil soluble dies and have a sufficiently pigmentsare required. low viscosity. Slow drying Micro- A microemulsion is aStops ink bleed Viscosity higher All IJ series ink emulsion stable, selfforming High dye than water jets emulsion of oil, water, solubility Costis slightly and surfactant. The Water, oil, and higher than watercharacteristic drop size amphiphilic soluble based ink is less than 100nm, dies can be used High surfactant and is determined by Can stabilizeconcentration the preferred curvature pigment required (around of thesurfactant. suspensions 5%)

I claim:
 1. A method of operating an ink jet printhead that includes aplurality of nozzle arrangements and an ink reservoir, each nozzlearrangement having: a nozzle chamber and an ink ejection port in fluidcommunication with the nozzle chamber, and a closure that is operativelypositioned with respect to the ink ejection port, the closure beingdisplaceable between open and closed positions to open and close the inkejection port, respectively, the ink reservoir in fluid communicationwith the nozzle chambers, the method comprising the steps of:maintaining each closure in the closed position; subjecting ink in theink reservoir and thus each nozzle chamber to an oscillating pressure,selectively and independently displacing each closure into the openposition so that an ink droplet is ejected from the respective inkejection port as a result of the oscillating pressure.
 2. The method ofclaim 1 which includes ejecting the ink droplet on a first cycle ofpositive pressure applied to the ink, so that the droplet separates on afirst cycle of negative pressure applied to the ink.
 3. The method ofclaim 2 which includes maintaining the closure in the open positionduring a second cycle of positive pressure to facilitate refilling ofthe nozzle chamber from the ink reservoir.
 4. The method of claim 3which includes closing the ink ejection port before a second cycle ofnegative pressure for inhibiting withdrawal of ink from the nozzlechamber.
 5. The method of claim 1 in which said ink jet nozzlearrangement forms part of an array of ink jet nozzle arrangements whichincludes varying the amplitude of the pressure in the ink reservoir inresponse to viscosity of the ink and the number of drops to be ejectedfrom the array.
 6. An ink jet printhead chip which comprises: asubstrate, a plurality of nozzle arrangements positioned on thesubstrate, each nozzle arrangement comprising a nozzle chamber includingwall and an ink ejection port defined in at least one wall in fluidcommunication with the nozzle chamber; and a closure that is operativelypositioned with respect to the ink ejection port, the closure beingdisplaceable between a closed position in which the closure closes theink ejection port and an open position in which ink ejection port isopen, an ink reservoir in fluid communication with each nozzle chamber;and a source of oscillating pressure that imparts an oscillatingpressure to ink in the reservoir, so that, when the closure is displacedinto the open position, a drop of ink is ejected from the ink ejectionport.
 7. The printhead chip of claim 6 in which the source of pressureis arranged in the reservoir.
 8. The printhead chip of claim 6 in whichthe source of pressure is a transducer.
 9. The printhead chip of claim 8in which the transducer is an ultrasonic transducer.
 10. The printheadchip of claim 6 in which the closure includes a shutter that is mountedon an actuator in a normally closed position in alignment with the inkejection port, activation of the actuator on receipt of an electricalsignal causing the shutter to move out of alignment with the inkejection port to open the ink ejection port.
 11. The printhead chip ofclaim 10 in which the actuator is an electro-thermal bend actuator. 12.The printhead chip of claim 6 wherein the closure is located within thenozzle chamber.
 13. The printhead chip of claim 6 wherein the actuatorrotates the closure between the open and closed position.